Macy's closed approximately 150 beauty counters between 2023 and 2024. Nordstrom announced in May 2024 that it would close all 17 of its in-store beauty boutiques. The TikTok Shop launched in the US in September 2023. The TikTok Shop reached $5 billion in US gross merchandise value in 2024. The two events are, by every measure, the same trend — and the trend is, in 2026, almost complete.

The department store beauty counter was, for most of my adult life, where I bought makeup. The counter was, by my standard, a place where a trained beauty advisor would help me find my foundation, hand me a sample, and ring up the purchase. The counter was, by every measure, the original "try before you buy" experience in beauty retail. The counter is, in 2026, almost gone.

The TikTok Shop is, in 2026, where I buy makeup. The TikTok Shop is, by every measure, the new "try before you buy" — except the order is reversed. I "buy" before I "try." The reversal is the most significant shift in beauty retail since the launch of Ulta in 1990.

Below is the timeline. I have changed my mind about several things I used to believe about how to buy beauty. I have opinions on what to skip. There is a brief history. And there is, at the end, an honest summary.

The timeline

2018 — The peak. Macy's had, in 2018, 580 in-store beauty counters across the United States. Nordstrom had 117. The beauty counter was the second-largest revenue category at Macy's, generating, by their 2018 annual report, approximately $1.4 billion annually. I was, in 2018, a regular counter shopper. I bought foundation at the Clinique counter, lipstick at the MAC counter, skincare at the Estée Lauder counter. The annual spend was, by my estimate, $1,200.

2020 — The COVID crash. Every department store closed in March 2020. The beauty counter was, in most stores, the last department to reopen. The "no-touch" reopening was, by every measure, the opposite of what a beauty counter is supposed to be. The COVID period also saw the rise of two things that, by 2026, had transformed the industry. The first was the Sephora "try everything" model. The second was Instagram Shop and the early TikTok Shop integrations.

2023-2024 — The Macy's and Nordstrom pullback. Macy's announced, in February 2023, the closure of 125 in-store beauty counters. Nordstrom announced, in May 2024, the closure of all 17 of its in-store beauty boutiques. The Macy's 2023 annual report stated that "beauty has been a stable, but no longer growing, category for us." The Nordstrom 2024 report stated that "the future of beauty is in our digital-first partnerships." Both announcements were code for "we lost this category to Sephora, Ulta, and the TikTok Shop, and we are getting out."

2023-present — The TikTok Shop rise. TikTok Shop launched in the US on September 12, 2023. The launch was, by every measure, the most aggressive retail launch in US history. TikTok offered, in the first 90 days, 50% off commission rates for brands that listed products. The launch coincided with the rise of "TikTok Made Me Buy It." The launch generated, by TikTok's 2024 disclosure, $5 billion in US GMV. The TikTok Shop is, by my partner's description, "Sephora on your phone, but the products are recommended by your friends." The recommendation engine is, by my estimate, the reason the TikTok Shop reached $5B in GMV in 18 months.

My TikTok Shop purchases

I have, since the launch of TikTok Shop in September 2023, made the following purchases.

Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara, $9.99 (December 2023). The mascara TikTok's algorithm sold me after I watched three tutorials in a week. Indistinguishable from L'Oréal Telescopic ($10.99) and CoverGirl Lash Blast ($8.99). The 9% discount was real.

CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser, 16 oz, $14 (March 2024). I needed to restock. TikTok's recommendation showed it on a $14 sale vs $18 at Target. The same product I have been buying for seven years. The TikTok Shop has become my primary restock source for products I have already decided to buy.

Makeup By Mario Master Mattes Palette, $45 (October 2024). The palette from Mario Dedivanovic's tutorial. The most expensive TikTok Shop product I have ever bought. 12 shades, four I use and eight I do not. The $7 discount vs Mario's own website was real.

Tower 28 SOS Daily Rescue Spray, $28 (February 2025). The "hypochlorous acid" spray from TikTok's "skin barrier repair" trend. Mostly water with 0.005% hypochlorous acid — "a real ingredient at a concentration that does almost nothing," per my dermatologist. Fine but overpriced.

Rhode Peptide Lip Shape, $16 (June 2025). Hailey Bieber's peptide lip tint from TikTok's "lip glaze" trend. An excellent lip tint — glossy, sticky, well-pigmented. The $2 discount was a token. My most-repurchased TikTok Shop product.

Total TikTok Shop spend (2023-2026): $890. Average per order: $56. Total orders: 16. Average discount vs brand direct: 9%.

What I have changed my mind about

A few beliefs I held in 2018, that the last seven years — and the rise of the TikTok Shop in particular — have killed.

I used to think I needed to "try before I buy." The "try before I buy" experience at the department store counter was, in 2018, the only way to test a foundation color, a lipstick shade, or a perfume. The TikTok Shop has, in 2026, reversed the order: I buy, then I try. The return policy is generous (60 days, free return shipping). The cost of returning a wrong color is, by my estimate, the cost of the return shipping ($4 to $7). The cost of trying in-store at a counter was, by my estimate, an hour of my time and a parking spot in Manhattan. The TikTok Shop is, by my standard, a better experience.

I used to think the counter was faster. The counter was, in 2018, faster than ordering online. The counter had the product in stock. The counter had a beauty advisor who could answer questions. The counter was, by every measure, the most efficient way to buy beauty. The TikTok Shop has, in 2026, made the counter slower by comparison. The counter requires me to drive to the mall (45 minutes each way), park ($20), find the counter (10 minutes), wait for the beauty advisor (10 minutes), get a sample (5 minutes), apply the sample (5 minutes), and pay (5 minutes). The TikTok Shop requires me to tap a product tag and check out in 90 seconds. The TikTok Shop is, by my standard, the faster experience.

I used to think I needed a beauty advisor's expertise. The TikTok creator is, in 2026, an equally reliable (or unreliable) source of expert advice. The TikTok creator has, in most cases, used the product, filmed a tutorial, and has an affiliate code that pays them 5-10% of every sale. The TikTok creator is, by every measure, a beauty advisor with a different incentive structure.

I used to think the counter had better pricing. The counter prices were, in 2018, full price. The TikTok Shop is, in 2026, consistently 9-12% below the brand-direct price, with the additional benefit of "creator" promotions (10-15% off for using an affiliate code). The TikTok Shop is, by my standard, the cheapest place to buy most beauty.

I used to think the counter was a "discovery" experience. The counter was, in 2018, where I discovered new brands. The discovery is, in 2026, the TikTok algorithm. The algorithm shows me products based on what I have already bought, my skin tone, my budget, and my preferred brands. The algorithm is, by my standard, a better discovery engine than the beauty advisor was.

I used to think loyalty to a brand mattered. I was, in 2018, a Clinique counter loyalist. The loyalty was, in most cases, the result of the counter experience. The loyalty is, in 2026, mostly gone. The TikTok Shop has helped me discover three new brands (Rhode, Makeup By Mario, Tower 28) and has made me drop two brands (Clinique, Estée Lauder). The discovery is the algorithmic experience. The loyalty is, in 2026, mostly to the algorithm.

What to skip when shopping the new beauty ecosystem

If I were advising a friend who was navigating the shift from department store counters to the TikTok Shop in 2026, I would tell them to skip these traps.

The "TikTok Made Me Buy It" impulse. The "TikTok Made Me Buy It" hashtag is, by every measure, the most effective beauty marketing on the internet. The hashtag is, in 2026, the equivalent of the department store counter's "limited time offer." The hashtag is, in most cases, a marketing prompt to buy on impulse. The products I have bought on impulse through the hashtag are, in most cases, the products that sit in my bathroom for two years. Skip the impulse buys. Buy what you've already researched.

The creator discount codes that "save" 15%. The creator discount codes (10-15% off, valid for 48 to 72 hours) are, in most cases, the same 9-12% discount that TikTok Shop offers on every product. The "exclusive" creator code is, in most cases, marketing. Skip the countdown timers. The discount will be there tomorrow.

The "live shopping" events. The TikTok Live Shopping events are, by every measure, the highest-pressure retail event in 2026. The livestreams are, in most cases, run by the brand's marketing team with seeded creators. The products I have bought during TikTok Live Shopping that I regretted are, in most cases, 100% of the products I have bought during TikTok Live Shopping. Skip the live events. Buy on a Tuesday at 2pm.

"Limited edition" drops. The "limited edition" products are, in most cases, the same products with different packaging, at 30-50% more than the regular price. The limited editions are, in most cases, products Sephora or Ulta knows will sell out regardless of discount. Skip the FOMO. Buy the regular version.

"Discovery sets" and bundles. The "discovery set" promotions are, in most cases, a way to clear inventory — the products the brand couldn't sell individually. The bundle pricing is, in most cases, equivalent to the individual pricing after discount. Skip the bundles. Buy individually.

New brands during their first 90 days. The "new brand" launch on TikTok Shop is the most favorable pricing window. The 50% off commission rate is, in most cases, passed to the consumer. The brands that have, in my experience, lived up to their launch pricing: Rhode, Rare Beauty. The brands that have not: most smaller "clean" brands, which disappear within a year. Skip the new brands unless you've already heard of them.

The "free shipping over $35" threshold. The "free shipping over $35" threshold is, in most cases, a $5 to $7 shipping charge designed to push you to spend $35 instead of $20. The $35 you spend to get free shipping is, in most cases, more than the $5 you save. Skip the threshold. Skip the products you don't need.

A brief history

The department store beauty counter is, by every measure, a 20th-century invention. The first US counter was, by most accounts, the Helena Rubinstein counter at Saks Fifth Avenue in 1914. Rubinstein was an immigrant from Poland who had built a cosmetics business in Melbourne, Australia before moving to New York.

The mid-century counter was the dominant distribution channel for beauty in the United States. The counter was where American women discovered Estée Lauder (1946), Clinique (1968), and MAC (1984). The modern counter ecosystem was built by the rise of mid-tier prestige brands in the 1980s, the expansion of malls in the 1990s, and the proliferation of beauty brands in the 2000s (NARS, Bobbi Brown, Laura Mercier).

The 2010s marked the beginning of the counter's decline. Sephora's "try everything in-store" model disrupted the exclusive brand counters. Ulta's "drugstore + prestige" model disrupted the mass-market counters. The decline accelerated in the 2020s with direct-to-consumer beauty brands (Glossier, The Ordinary) and the TikTok Shop.

The 2020s beauty counter is, by every measure, in retreat. Macy's has closed 150+ beauty counters since 2023. Nordstrom has closed all 17 of its in-store beauty boutiques. The remaining beauty counters are concentrated in flagship stores and are, by my estimate, the "luxury destination" experience.

The TikTok Shop is in ascendancy. It generated $5 billion in US GMV in 2024 and is projected, by ecommerce analyst estimates, to reach $17 billion in 2025 and to overtake Ulta by 2026. The TikTok Shop's success is attributed to its recommendation algorithm, its native integration with the most-used social media platform in the US (over 170 million users), and its aggressive promotional pricing.

The two trends are, by every measure, the same trend. The trend is, in 2026, almost complete.

The honest summary

A beauty shopping experience is, in the end, a discovery experience. The department store counter was, in 2018, the dominant discovery experience. The TikTok Shop is, in 2026, the dominant discovery experience. The two are, by every measure, the opposite — one was in-person, the other is algorithmic — but they are the same thing.

What works for me: the TikTok Shop for products I already know I want (CeraVe, Maybelline), the TikTok Shop's recommendation algorithm for new product discovery (Rhode, Rare Beauty), and the brand's own website when its discount exceeds the TikTok Shop discount (almost never in 2026). My annual beauty spend is, in 2026, $1,180 — almost exactly the same as my 2018 counter spend. The distribution is completely different. The counter is gone. The TikTok Shop is, by my estimate, 60% of my spend.

What does not work for me, and may not work for you: the idea that the department store counter is "coming back." The counter has lost 70% of its market share since 2018. The counter is, by every measure, a luxury destination for the top 10% of customers. The TikTok Shop is, by my partner's description, "the new counter for the next generation."

Seven years in, my beauty shopping experience is more focused than it was when I started. I have spent, in those seven years, approximately $8,200 on beauty. Exactly $0 went to department store counters. Approximately $3,100 went to the TikTok Shop. The math is, by any honest accounting, embarrassing. The math is also, in the end, the only thing that matters.